Sometimes if I know things will be a little crazy at school, I’ll do a pen illustration related to our class project the night before. Then, for a few minutes each period, I’ll squeeze in some watercolor time. Trust me, it’s these small things that make a huge difference in terms of mental wellness! (But I really can’t complain much about my kids, they’re a good bunch… it’s the 6 classes in a row that’s exhausting!)
We celebrated BJ’s 26th birthday a few weekends ago with dinner at Reef. Overall, everything was delicious, but the appetizer and desert were the shining stars! For starters we shared mussels cooked in Shiner Bock, and we ended the meal with a “deconstructed” cafe sua da: Vietnamese coffee tart, condensed milk ice cream, with mint syrup. Heaven.
photos from BJ’s phone
Ralph Lauren & Nicole Farhi Spring RTW 2010 | style.com
I think denim overalls were on my Christmas wish list for two straight years in the 6th and 7th grade, along with Caboodles, and American Dolls. The resurgence of overalls on the runway kind of makes me rethink the style (they pull it off well, right?), but even with the modern twists, it probably won’t be making my list this year. BJ will be happy about that!
For the past month, we’ve been working on pages  for a zine. This time, we want to use other means of reproduction like woodcuts, but here’s a sneak peak of one of my pieces. Can you guess who?
I’m hoping we can have all 10 completed before next month, but everything has been hectic around here! This project has helped me destress, so it has already been worth it. And we’ve been brainstorming about the next Riley zine. I think it’s going to be pretty sweet.
My five musicians
BJ’s five (newly feminized)
Okay, sometimes she’s cute. Wishing it was Saturday.
And TGIS. Last week was long and tiring due to a combination of a variety of things: weather, Homecoming Week at school = crazy students, workshops, trying to stay healthy, late buses etc. Late Friday night, we were both in a funk, just got off of work, but everything quickly turned around after making plans for some frozen pizza, Dark n’ Stormies, Double Chocolate Stout, Dots, and grilled T-bones. MMMmmmm. We capped the night off watching Grey Gardens with Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange.
Btw, RISD girls, I thought of y’all and the Wild Colonial after mixing my own Dark n’ Stormy. Even BJ liked it!
(A 1950s wedding dress to the rescue! This bride found out a few weeks before the wedding that her original dress would not arrive on time. Luckily, she stumbled upon this vintage beauty  soon after.) via Snippet and Ink | Photos by Jonas Peterson
Shoot, I got an engagement party to plan. I was against roasted pig, but after BJ fell in love with the pork cheek and dandelion salad at Feast, I think it’s back on the menu. No pig head. I think we can do without it!
Lena Corwin’s Travel Poster from BJ. The mail gods were interfering with our plans to get this poster in our hands, but Lena persevered, and it finally got to us! The poster is basically a tour of European architecture—italicized!
Some of the best things to receive, buy, share are Mike Perry‘s printed works. I snagged Issue #2 (Swimsuit Edition) of Untitled, a zine devoted to his shifting interests. I admire how each element of it—the pictures, clothes, drawings, etc.—belongs to a collaborative effort and one does not outshine the other. Anna’s poetic black-and-white photographs and Mike’s innocent injections of color are the perfect complements.
Untitled Issue # 3 One Photo Shoot
This poster was tucked among the zines as a nice surprise. It looks like a dog-pile of monsters made out of sherbet. I think it’ll go perfectly in my classroom!
Olly Moss‘s film poster remixes. Genius. I really admire how he uses  limited tools to perfectly capture the essence of the subject—something I try to reiterate to my students. I can’t blame them for thinking kitchen-sink maximalism is good; ads and magazine pages today are so crowded. I got a headache flipping through my sister’s Seventeen magazine last night. Those layouts are craazzzzy.
Gah. These are so good. And he’s only 22!
 Dear gamer who charged hundreds of dollars of ridiculous software from B’s account,
love,
c + b